The Strike
by Sandstorm - Books
Summary: Jarod Taylor, the son of the Earth's very first trillionaire, has been stranded on an island far out in the ocean. He is held captive by a group known as the Claw. He soon learns that he's no longer a normal human, and he's not the only one. The ways of the world are changing, and it's up to Jarod to defend his world before it's too late.
1. Chapter 1

NerfSonicRD: Hey, guys. Welcome to the origin story of my OC, Strike, as well as Dark Hunter's, Specter.

DarkHunter677: Hello. As my friend stated, this is the origin of our OCs, and how they came to be heroes. A couple of my OCs will be in this, but I don't know when they'll enter.

NerfSonicRD: That depends. Anyways, just before we get into the story, just to let you know, this is not the Strike from my other Fanfics. He was my second version. In fact, if any of you had seen some of my videos on my YouTube Channel, I've made videos about the first version of my character, Blue Strike. So this story will rather be about him. Well, that's all. Hope you enjoy.

The sun shined brightly through the sky on a peaceful afternoon. The citizens of Sunny City were enjoying their day. Traffic was normal as the citizens were walking around through the parks and neighborhoods.

In the middle of Sunny City, a large science facility known as O.M.E.G.A. Laboratories was preparing its particle accelerator for a massive project; the future. The accelerator was built to create abilities that people had never dreamt of before. The leader of the facility, Harold Taylor had planned from this project for years.

Harold Taylor was the Earth's very first trillionaire. He had over nine hundred trillion dollars. He built O.M.E.G.A. Labs to create the future. It was his family's dream, mostly the dream for Harold's son, Jarod Taylor.

Jarod Taylor was fifteen years old and very bright. His father was raising him really well. He took him to the best schools and on a lot of wonderful trips. Jarod was athletic, strong, very handsome to so many people, and he was really smart. He knew so much about science, history, he was an expert in playing guitar, piano, drums and other instruments, and he learned so much about the Earth. He was fascinated with people having superpowers.

Jarod had always made his parents really proud of him. He always got his schoolwork finished at school in time with very high marks. He won many different and challenging competitions with gold medals, cups, and other amazing rewards in some of his favorite sports, such as hockey, soccer, swimming and much more. He had a lot of training in every type of martial artists, as well as parkour and gymnastics. He even made so many cover songs with his music skills and always got a lot of people's entertainment.

Today, at Sunny High School, it was 12:50, and the students were in the cafeteria getting their lunch and sitting in the tables. One male student had just grabbed his food and went to find a table. This boy was Jarod. He was the school's most popular student.

Jarod found a table and sat down with his tray. Two of his best friends sat next to him, Ramona Jones and Dan Jackson.

Ramona Jones was Sunny School's greatest girl athlete. She had been a best friend with Jarod ever since she arrived in Grade 5. She was excellent at most sports, especially at swimming.

Dan Jackson was very skilled with technology and science. He knew Jarod ever since their years in Lower School. He had been fascinated with creating futuristic tech to improve people's lives.

"Hey, guys," Jarod said.

"Hey, Jarod," Ramona said as she drank her water, "So, I hear you're gonna leave in a few minutes?"

"Yep," Jarod said as he took a bite from his hotdog, "Another plane trip. Again."

"So, where you going this time?" Dan asked.

"Grand Cayman," Jarod answered, "It's my favorite place to visit. I've gone there a lot. I really like the nice beaches, and the same nice room I always get."

"Ah, right," Dan said, before he looked at his tray, "Oh, I forgot to get a drink. I'll be right back."

Dan went to get himself water. Jarod spoke, "Hey, Ramona."

"Yeah, Jarod?" Ramona asked.

"Today's a very, very big day," Jarod said, "My father's going to activate the particle accelerator at O.M.E.G.A. Labs… tonight."

As soon as Jarod had said that, Dan's new tray landed right next to Jarod's, and Dan was right in Jarod's face, "Did you just say particle accelerator?!"

"Whoa, chill, Dan," Jarod said as he pushed Dan away for space, "Yes, I did just say that.

"Yo, some of the others said that it's gonna bring the future straight to the present," Dan said, "And it actually starts tonight!"

"Dude, calm down," Ramona said, "We get it. And don't get me wrong, I'm really excited for it too. But why are _you_ so excited about it?"

"Think about it," Dan said, "Once it activates, the future begins. New technology, new vehicles, and even more. I can hardly wait!"

"Heh, I actually never thought you'd be that fascinated," Jarod said.

"Hey, man," Dan said, "Your dad is a literal genius! I mean, have you even seen what technology he's already created?"

"Yeah, yeah," Jarod said, "I've been visiting O.M.E.G.A. Labs many times over."

Jarod then checked the clock and saw it was 1:00, "Oh, that's my cue. Sorry, guys. I gotta go. A taxi's coming to pick me up right now."

"Okay, Jarod," Ramona said, "Enjoy your trip."

"And Jarod," Dan called out, "Tell your dad I said hi!"

Jarod just chuckled as he dumped his tray. Then as he began to walk through the halls, most of the students waved hi to him. They knew who he was, and Jarod waved back to them. He went to his locker and backed up his stuff in his backpack. But as soon as he locked his locker, a pump male student with a greedy face walked up to him, Fred Ronald.

"Hey there, rich punk," Fred slapped Jarod's backpack onto the floor.

Jarod sighed, "Really, Fred? You still want to continue this?"

"You think that just because you're rich it means you can have all the attention you want?" Fred pointed at Jarod.

Jarod picked up his backpack, "Look, I don't try to get people's attention. I just like to say hi to them, and that's it. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go."

Jarod began to walk to the front door. Fred growled and he was about to walk after him, but then he felt a hand grab his shoulder. He looked and saw that Jarod's science teacher, Mr. Matt was watching.

"You, Mr. Ronald are coming with me to the principle's office," Mr. Matt said.

Fred grumbled as they went to the principle's office. Jarod went out the door and saw his taxi was waiting for him. The driver waved at him, "Jarod, I'm here to take you home. Let's go."

Jarod nodded as he approached the taxi. Then as he was about to open the door, a bunch of girls approached Jarod. They were fans of him.

"Hi, Jarod," one of the girls said, "Can we get your picture?"

Jarod smiled, "Sure."

Another girl took a selfie of her, some of her friends, and Jarod. And the girls all cheered that they got a picture of them with him. Jarod chuckled as he got in the front passenger seat of the taxi, "See ya, girls."

As the taxi drove away, the girls all waved and said bye to Jarod. As the taxi was driving through the city, Jarod was waving hi to anyone who saw him. As the taxi stopped at a red light next to Sunny Park, everyone could see Jarod and waved at him and took pictures. Jarod just smiled and waved.

When the light turned green, the taxi continued to drive around town. Everyone who saw Jarod in the taxi waved and smiled at him. When the taxi was driving next to a train, the driver and passengers waved at Jarod. Some of the girls on it squealed in excitement as Jarod smiled and winked at them.

Then the taxi began driving through a long tunnel. Once it came out of the other side, close by was Jarod's father's facility, O.M.E.G.A. Laboratories. It was the biggest science facility on the planet, and it was in the very center of Sunny City. It was long and round and had three separate buildings on it.

Jarod loved looking at the facility from his home. He could be able to see the entire building from there. Then his taxi began to drive up a small bridge that led to a hill where his mansion was. The mansion was massive. It had seven floors with a lot of windows each. The seventh floor had a balcony up at the top and the roof with benches, a table with chairs, and an advanced telescope.

The taxi stopped in front of the pathway that led straight to the front of the door. Jarod stepped out, "Thanks for the ride."

"No problem, Jarod," the taxi driver said, "Have a good night and a wonderful trip."

The taxi drove away. Jarod walked to the doors and opened them. He went inside and looked around the area. There were a lot of special features all over. A special piano was next to a glass wall with water running down inside it, next to a spiral stairway that led to the garage and workshop. The main stairway that was forward in front of Jarod had one doorway to the kitchen, and two other stairs that led upstairs. There were many pictures of Jarod's history from when he won those competitions, went on amazing trips and many more. There was also a shelf with many of Jarod's gold trophies and medals.

Then the doors to the kitchen opened and two adults walked out and down the stairs to Jarod. It was Harold and his wife Crista, Jarod's mother.

"Hey, Jarod," Harold said, "How was school today?"

"It was okay, as always," Jarod said, "No homework for me, again. And I've been admired by a lot of people on the way home."

"You've learned really well, sweetie," Crista said, "You should be proud of yourself."

"Oh, I am," Jarod said, "I always have been, always will be."

"Well, I'm glad you went through a good week once more, son," Harold said, "Because your trip with your mother is going to be better. Have a little rest, grab some dinner, and you'll be ready to go."

Jarod nodded as he went to his room. When he went in, he put down his backpack and sat down on his bed. He grabbed his laptop and decided to check out what was on the news. It showed him the things that were going to happen later. It had a picture of O.M.E.G.A. Labs at the top.

Jarod then looked out the door window that led to the balcony outside his room. He could see O.M.E.G.A. Labs and the whole city through it. He liked the view.

Jarod could a vibration in his pocket. He checked and saw that Dan was calling him on his phone. He answered, "Hey, Dan."

Dan was in a small science lab with a lot of equipment. He had some kind high-tech gauntlets and a mask on his working bench.

"Hey, Jarod," Dan said, "How you doing?"

"Just relaxing in my room," Jarod said, "Gonna leave for Grand Cayman in a few hours. Whatcha up to?"

"Oh, I'm just working on a little bit of a project I've been making for a while," Dan said as he put some pieces on one of his gauntlets.

"Really? Like what?" Jarod asked.

Dan took his phone and sat against a scanner to turn record what he was doing while Jarod was talking, "Check this out."

Jarod began watching as Dan showed him, "See, Jarod? I'm making some really cool gauntlets and a mask. When they're ready, I will be able to have cool abilities, like phasing and stuff like that."

"Nice," Jarod said, before he noticed a small round device next to Dan's project, "What's that next to them?"

"Oh, this?" Dan asked grabbing the device, "This is a shield generator. Want to see how it works?"

Dan activated the shield generator and sat it on the table. It then had a small blue energy shield around it. "Cool, huh?" Dan asked.

"Not bad," Jarod said.

Then the shield generator seemed like it was malfunctioning. Then the shield disappeared and a red text that said fail was above the generator.

"Huh?" Dan said, "This didn't happen before."

Dan was about to check the device. Jarod tried to speak, "Uh, bad idea, Dan."

But right as Dan was about to touch the generator, it suddenly went out with a FLASH! The generator flashed a blinding light with Dan yelping, "AAAAAAHHH!"

"Dan, you okay?" Jarod asked.

Dan moaned as he stood up covered in soot, "Eh, it's a work in progress. Look, I gotta go. And I need to be sure that when the particle accelerator goes online, it doesn't effect my work."

"Sure, see ya, Dan," Jarod hung up.

Then Jarod's door opened and Harold stepped in, "Jarod, I'm going to head to O.M.E.G.A. Labs to prepare the accelerator. Your mother has made you dinner."

"All right," Jarod said, "See ya, Dad."

"Have a good trip, son," Harold said as he left.

Jarod went downstairs to the dining room where his mother was waiting for him. Jarod sat down in his chair and Christa gave him a bowl of chicken noddle soup, "Here you go, sweetie," she said, "Be sure that once you finish, you get yourself ready for the trip."

"Sure thing, Mom," Jarod said.

Christa left as Jarod began having his soup. Later, at Sunny Airport, a small plane for Jarod and Christa arrived. One of the workers put their suitcases in the fuselage as Jarod and Christa got in the plane. Once the runway was clear, the plane began to take off.

A bit later, the plane was in the air, and Jarod and Christa were watching the news on the TV. Ramona's father, Jacob was reporting what was happening at O.M.E.G.A. Labs.

"This is Jacob Jones from Sunny City News," Jacob said, "Harold has now activated the particle accelerator at O.M.E.G.A. Labs as we speak. The future has begun."

Jarod was excited and Christa smiled, "Our dream is finally coming true, sweetie."

Then one of the pilots came to them, "Guys, we're starting to run into a storm. You're gonna need to take your seats and fasten your seatbelts."

Jarod could then feel his phone vibrating. He checked it and saw Dan was trying to call him. He answered, "Hey, Dan. You seeing the news?"

Strangely, at Dan's lab, everything was shaking around. Dan was panicking, "Jarod, you need to get out of your plane now! The accelerator exploded!"

"What?" Jarod asked, "What do you mean?"

"Look out your window!" Dan panicked.

Jarod looked out the window of the plane. His eyes widened when he saw a massive flash of light coming from his country and shooting into the sky. A massive wave of energy was spreading everywhere.

When Dan saw what was happening, he was shocked, "J-Jarod?"

"Dan, what is it?" Jarod asked.

"It's… it's…" Dan stammered.

All of a sudden, the wave of energy went through Dan's lab, breaking the window and forcing Dan to fly right into the table where his project was. As soon as he landed, the gauntlets somehow attached themselves to his lower arms and the mask was right on his face. Red electricity was crackling as Dan yelled in utter pain, "AAAAAAAHHH!"

Jarod could hear Dan screaming on the phone until it went out, "Dan? Dan! Are you okay!?"

Jarod then saw the energy coming right towards the plane, "GET DOWN!"

Christa and the pilots got down, but as soon as the energy surrounded the plane, the windows broke and some pieces flew at Jarod. Jarod covered himself before they hit him. Thunder and lightning was striking everywhere around the plane.

Jarod then saw some kind of blue light out of the windows right behind him. He turned around to see what it was, and then all of sudden, a massive lightning bolt struck through the window and hit Jarod in his chest, "AAAAAAAAHHH!"

Jarod was flown right into the roof of the plane and then landed back on the floor groaning in utter pain. "JAROD!" Christa said.

Christa ran to Jarod who tried to get up. One of the pilots came to them, "Christa, our engines are destroyed! We're gonna crash!"

Christa then saw an open locker with a parachute, "Not all of us."

Christa went to the locker and grabbed the parachute. She quickly helped Jarod put it on. The second pilot yelled, "Christa, what the hell are you doing!? That's the only parachute we have!"

"If anyone's gonna make it out of this, it's gonna be my son!" Christa yelled back.

Christa got Jarod up and brought him to the nearest door. But as soon as she tried to open it, the first pilot suddenly pulled out a pistol from his jacket. Jarod, Christa, and the other pilot gasped in shock.

"I'm afraid we all know that's not an option," the pilot said pointing the gun as Christa and Jarod, "Your father's cash will be mine, Jarod."

The other pilot suddenly grabbed the first one from behind and pulled the gun back. As they struggled with each other, the pilot shouted, "Quick, get him out of here!"

Christa opened the door and the wind was blowing hard through.

"Mom?" Jarod asked.

"I'm sorry, Jarod," Christa said as she had tears in her eyes, "I love you."

Christa pushed Jarod out of the plane as it began to fall down. "MOM, NO!" Jarod yelled.

Jarod quickly grabbed the cord and pulled it. The parachute popped out of the bag and slowed Jarod down from falling.

The armed pilot growled, "NO!"

The pilot then shot Christa in the chest and the other pilot in the head, "AHH!"

Christa groaned in pain as the pilot went to the front. He tried to turn the plane, but it didn't work. He could see through the window that the plane was heading straight for the ocean.

The pilot growled before he said, "For the Claw."

The plane crashed into the water, and then KABOOM! It exploded with its pieces flying everywhere. Jarod had a waterfall of tears in his eyes, "No. Mom."

Then a piece of the plane's right wing was flying right at Jarod. It cut the ropes attacked to the parachute. Jarod began to fall down to the water, "AAAAAAAAAAAHHH!"

Jarod landed in the water with a massive splash. Underwater, Jarod was unconscious, but then something began to happen. Mysterious whitish blue energy was circling him as there was some kind of whitish blue glow on Jarod's chest.

A strange whitish blue glowing symbol was appearing on Jarod's chest. It was a symbol of a lightning bolt with a ring around it with the tips of the bolt striking out. Whatever had happened to Jarod, his life was about to change forever.


	2. Chapter 2

Hours later, the storm had stopped and the sun was shining in the sky. Jarod was still asleep, but he floated along the surface until he was on land. All that was around him was sand and rocks.

A pair of people was approaching Jarod. They took a look at him, and then they picked him up and carried him away. While Jarod was in his sleep, he could hear many sounds and people talking while he could feel syringes and medical tools touching him.

Then after a while, Jarod suddenly woke up and gasped. He looked around and saw he was lying on a medical bed with a life-support machine and some medical tools. Everything around was a sandy floor with rocks as walls and a roof, almost like he was in a cave.

Jarod couched as he looked around more. He then saw a man who was looking in a mirror and was shaving his beard. He looked like he was a soldier of some type. Jarod tried to sit up, but then he felt pain in his stomach and lay back down groaning, "Uuuughhh…"

"Don't get up, kid," the man said as he turned to him, "You have some fractured ribs, but they're almost healed."

Jarod groaned as he stayed down, "Who the hell are you?"

"Name's Jase," the soldier said, "Nice to meet you."

"Okay," Jarod said, "What's going on?"

"Well, currently, you're in a little prison camp on the island of Zephis," Jase said.

Jarod groaned as he held his head, "How'd I get here? What happened?"

"From what we found, you were in a plane crash," Jase said, "But you were lucky, kid."

Jase then brought Jarod a bowl of warm soup, "Here, this should help. It might taste disgusting to you, but it's healthy."

The taste didn't seem to bother Jarod. As he had his soup, he asked Jase, "What exactly are you, a soldier or something, if I may ask?"

"Well, I'm a mercenary, to be exact," Jase said, "One of 56 on this island."

BANG! BANG! There was a loud bang from the outside of a metal door. Then an angry male voice was shouting, "Jase! Is he awake!?"

"Give him a minute!" Jase called back, "He just woke up."

The man then seemed to be opening the door as the sound of footsteps were approaching. "Whoa, what's going on?" Jarod asked.

Jase helped Jarod sit up and whispered, "Just be quiet and do as I say."

The metal door began to open. "Put your hands up," Jase said.

Jarod and Jase put their hands on their heads. As the door opened, a group of men with weapons that looked like futuristic technology entered the room. They looked familiar to Jarod.

"Hey, are those Dan's weapon prototypes?" Jarod whispered.

"Shh!" Jase whispered back, "I'll explain once this is done. Now shut up."

The men had their weapons pointed at Jarod and Jase. Then a few of them men stepped aside revealing a man wearing dark clothes with white hair. He looked at Jarod and Jase, until he waved his hand down, and the men lowered their weapons.

"Relax," the man said.

Doing so, Jarod and Jase put their hands down. The man walked over to Jarod, "I'm sorry about this, Jarod. My men are just trying to be sure you don't do anything dumb."

"Who are you?" Jarod asked.

"My name is Illisies Crawford," the man said, "I am the leader of this army on this island."

"What is it that you want with me?" Jarod asked.

"Leave that question for later," Illisies said, "Come with me."

Jarod walked with Illisies out of the room in the cave. As they walked through, Jarod noticing that Illisies' men had many different types of prototypes of technology and weapons.

"Look familiar?" Illisies asked.

"Definitely," Jarod said, "These all look like prototypes my friend Dan built back at home in Sunny City."

"Ah, yes," Illisies agreed, "He's a smart one, even for his age, just like you."

"What do you mean?" Jarod asked.

"I've been hearing a lot about you through your childhood," Illisies explained, "Most rich kids like you would be crazy and act like they could have anything they want no matter what, but you've grown to be a wonderful and helpful boy. You're always kind and helpful to everyone on the planet. I am truly impressed."

"Being like someone who's obsessed with money and being a leader isn't my thing," Jarod said.

"You know, Jarod, I honestly never thought I'd ever meet you face-to-face," Illisies said, "I've been fascinated and astonished by your skills in science and engineering. Not to mention, your skills in sports are truly impressive."

Jarod and Illisies found a light shining through and there was an open way out of the cave. "Right this way," Illisies said.

As Jarod walked out of the cave, he had to cover his eyes from the brightness for a few seconds until his vision could handle the light. When he was able to see, he had a sudden surprised face.

There was a whole bunch of shelters for Illisies' men, as well as a bunch of advanced military vehicles, helicopters, and massive armed boats in the water. Most of the shelters were filled with weaponry, few had many medical supplies, and some seemed to have so advanced technology with what looked like human test tubes.

"How did you get all of this stuff?" Jarod asked.

"I used to work at O.M.E.G.A. Labs for your father," Illisies answered, "I built these machines for improvements for the military. They were meant to help people who were seriously injured in a fight get better in a matter of minutes."

"So, you're sort of a doctor?" Jarod asked.

"In a way," Illisies answered, "You see, I grew up with my father being in the military. He was the greatest medic they had. He taught me the ways of being a medic long before he died from cancer. I had hoped I would find a cure, but I wasn't smart enough to find it. But though I couldn't save him, I know that there are still so many people who needed help in medical aids."

"Oh, well, how come you quit?" Jarod asked.

Illisies looked at Jarod for a second, before he answered, "Let's talk about this in your shelter. Follow me."

Illisies walked Jarod to his shelter. It was a small brick house in the shape of a cube. When they went inside, Jarod saw that there was a bed on the right corner right next to the door while there was a table with a chair at the back, and on the left side, there were some shelves with some books for him to read, and at the back there was a small washroom as well as a shower.

Illisies sat down on the bed, "Sit down, Jarod."

Jarod sat down beside Illisies. Illisies spoke, "You see, my boy, your father, Harold and I were really close friends when we were young. We always hung out all the time. Crazy thing is, we were both gonna be billionaires and run Sunny City together. At least… that's what we hoped."

"Did something happen?" Jarod asked.

"He and I got into a bit of a disagreement over weapons," Illisies said, "I wanted the technology we created to be modified for military use, like the Gravity Well Generator. It could create an area with an intense gravitational force."

"Oh," Jarod said.

Illisies continued, "While I saw the value and genius in modification, Harold strongly disagreed. He wasn't into weapons as much as I was. And unfortunately, the government that I planned to sell my weapons to, conspired with Harold to get me fired. So I left Sunny City and went around the globe gathering allies."

"What for?" Jarod asked.

"Quite simple, really," Illisies answered, before he began to growl, "I did it to gather an army. To take back Sunny City from my traitorous, old friend."

Jarod was shocked when he heard Illisies said that. But Illisies spoke calmly, "But I don't want to have you involved. You're too much of an important resource to be killed. Now, I would recommend you get comfy, because you're not going be leaving this island… for a while, anyway."

"Why?" Jarod asked, "What did I ever do to you?"

"Oh, you did nothing, my boy," Illisies said, "It's just that you know of our existence, and I plan to go after your father. Both of which would fail if you were released. So you're not leaving."

Illisies stood up and went to the door. But before he shut the door, he mentioned, "Oh, and one more thing, we have a few projects, and we will need your help with them. If you do that, life might get a little better. So think about that."

Illisies closed the door as he left and locked it. Jarod sighed as he lay down on the bed. He thought to himself, _"What happened while I was asleep?"_

But at that very moment, something strange began to happen. Jarod began to have a weird feeling in his head, "Huh? What the-?"

The feeling was getting stranger quickly, Jarod couldn't understand what was going on with him, "Why am I feeling so weird?"

Jarod then began to see something strange in his mind. He felt something like he was getting a vibe. Everything around him was turning blue and his surroundings were changing.

From what Jarod was seeing, he was back in Sunny City, but the buildings looked like they were being destroyed. High in the sky, there was a massively large alien space ship sending hundreds of smaller ones.

Then he saw someone standing on a large rock while laughing evilly. But then the ships in the sky began to get struck by multiple bolts of lightning. Then a blur of bluish white electricity and energy was running out and taking down the madman's soldiers.

Jarod then began to feel a vibe again and what he was seeing was now gone. He was suddenly back in the same shelter he was just in.

Jarod held his head, "What was that?"

Jarod tried his best not to think about what happened. He went into the washroom to wash his face. But then things just began to get stranger. When he reached for the doorknob, he suddenly crushed it in a fraction of a second.

Jarod suddenly let go of the doorknob and backed up in shock, "Whoa. What in the-?"

Jarod looked at his hand, "What is going on here?"

Jarod then reached for the knob again and he made sure he softly grabbed it so he wouldn't crush it more. Then he entered his washroom and looked at his reflection. He saw that his face was really dirty. He turned the cold tab and used the water to wash it. But when his hands felt the water, he couldn't feel the temperature.

"That's weird," Jarod said.

Jarod washed his face and then dried it with a towel. He decided not to try and think about what was going on. He went to his bed and laid down.

After a few hours, Jarod heard a knock on the door. He sat up as the door opened. He saw that Illisies was there, "Jarod, come with me."

Jarod walked with Illisies to the workshop. When they entered, Jarod saw that some of Illisies' men were building some types of advanced armor. Each of them had different kinds of weaponry equipped in them. Jase was there with a few other mercenaries.

Illisies spoke to Jarod, "I need you to help them with building the armor. We have all the prototypes that we need to make them. They'll be sure to follow your instructions."

Illisies left the workshop. When he did, Jase and the mercenaries turned to Jarod. "Jarod, you okay?"

"Yeah," Jarod answered, "I'm fine. I could probably feel better without all those bad guys out there thought."

"Oh, none of us in here are like them," one of the other mercenaries said.

Jarod turned to the mercenaries in confusion, "Huh?"

Jase introduced the mercenaries to Jarod, "Jarod, these are my partners and friends, and my best friends, Vince and Rick. We don't have time for a full introduction, so we'll leave the others nameless."

"Gee, thanks," one of the others grumbled.

"Oh, stop complaining," Vince said.

"Just finish fixing your gear," Rick added.

"Hold on a minute," Jarod spoke out, "How come you're not like the others outside?"

"Well, we're free-range mercenaries," Jase answered, "We work for who ever pays the most. We're not bad guys."

"Then why are you working for Illisies?" Jarod asked, "Don't you know what he plans to do?"

"Oh, we know, and we don't like it at all," Rick answered, "But he's the guy with the money. If we don't help, we don't get paid."

Jarod sighed as he turned away. Jase asked, "So, what did Illisies want from you?"

"He wanted me to help with some special projects of his so he can invade Sunny City and go after my father," Jarod answered, "He believes that my expert science and engineering skills can accomplish that."

"Hmph," Jase said, "I've been wondering. Anything weird happening to you as of late?"

"Oh, umm, well…" Jarod said, "Something strange was just going on when I just in my shelter."

Jase asked, "That wouldn't happen to have blue lightning involved, would it?"

"What?" Jarod asked, "Don't be ridiculous. There wasn't any lightning in there."

"Hmm," Jase replied, "Just wondering."

One of the other mercenaries was carrying a heavy box of high-tech weaponry. He was just heading for the table, but then his foot tripped on a rock. He began to fall forwards and drop the box, but then…

Everything began to slow down. Everything… except for Jarod. Jarod looked around and saw that everything else was moving at about the speed of a snail.

"What the hell?" Jarod asked, "What's going on?"

Jarod then decided to help the mercenary, but as he took a step, he suddenly felt something strange behind him. He turned and saw some sort of wall made out of pure bright blue electric energy was following him as small bolts of lightning were striking out through the room. He took another step and saw that the energy was following him.

Jarod then moved to the mercenary, and then once he got to him, he grabbed him with one hand and the box of weaponry with the other.

All of a sudden, everything else was back at normal speed again as sparks of electricity crackled around the area for a few seconds.

"Whoa!" Vince said, "What was that? And how did you just get right there, Jarod?"

"I…" Jarod tried to say, "I don't know. Everything just began to slow down. And there was this weird blur of energy right behind me. And then as I came to help this guy, everything is moving at normal speed again."

Jase then spoke, "Yeah, I think he's one of them."

"Huh?" Jarod asked, "One of who?"

"Not WHO, WHAT," Jase said, "And that "what" would be a meta-human."

"Meta-what now?" Jarod asked.

"Meta-human," Rick answered.

"Think, humans with superpowers," Vince said.

"I'm not really following," Jarod said.

"Then let me explain," Jase said, "Just not here."

Jarod followed Jase to a quiet room in the workshop. Jase shut the door and he and Jarod sat down in chairs.

"I don't understand," Jarod asked, "What happened?"

"A particle accelerator is what happened," Jase answered.

"Wait…" Jarod said, "You mean… my father's particle accelerator at O.M.E.G.A. Labs?"

"That's the one," Jase said, "When that thing exploded, it released, I don't know exactly, across the world. Because of this, people started getting superpowers. We have no idea how many there are, but at least twenty really powerful ones are in Sunny City."

Jarod gave this some thought, "It must have released some sort of dark matter radiation when it happened. All I remember was before my mom's plane crashed, I was struck by lightning. I think that's how I got these… powers."

"That's my guess," Jase said, "A word of advice; don't show Illisies your powers. He's trying to collect meta-humans for his army."

"And I'm guessing he's had some success?" Jarod asked.

"Not much," Jase said, "He's got about… six, at last count. He's planning on using them against your father."

Jase then looked through the dark glass window and saw Illisies walk past it. Jase quickly said, "Jarod, come on. He's coming back."

Jarod and Jase came out of the room and began to work on some chest parts of the armor. Illisies came in the door and saw that Jarod was working with the mercs.

"Ah, the little genius is finally doing his job, I see," Illisies said, "Keep up the good work. And Jase, I'd like a word."

Jase nodded, "Fine."

Just before he left, he whispered to Jarod, "Don't show your powers to anyone else."

Jarod nodded as Jase left with Illisies. Vince and Rick came over to help him. "So, you're really a meta-human?" Vince asked.

"I guess so," Jarod asked.

"Hmph," Rick said, "I'm guessing Jase told you to keep it quiet?"

Jarod nodded. But he just couldn't get these powers out of his mind. Vince and Rick looked around to make none of the others were listening, and then they gave him a small piece of paper. It showed some directions across the island.

Vince whispered, "Get to this location tonight," he pointed on the paper where it said, 'S5-MS12'.

"Jase will meet you there," Rick said.


	3. Chapter 3

Later when it was nighttime, a few of Illisies' men were doing night guarding. Jarod slipped past them quietly. He soon made it to the area that Vince and Rick showed him on the paper. It was a small training ground that looked like it hadn't been used in a while.

"This must be it," Jarod said to himself quietly.

Jarod suddenly heard the sound of a gun pointed at him from behind. He turned around and saw Jase pointing a pistol at him.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Jarod whispered.

"Oh, sorry," Jase put his pistol away, "Didn't know it was you. Come on in before they see us."

Jarod and Jase quietly walked in and closed the door locking it before one of Illisies' men walked right past.

Jarod and Jase sighed in relief. "Okay, so why are we here?" Jarod asked.

"It's a training ground," Jase said, "We're here to train."

"Whoa, wait," Jarod said, "aren't they gonna hear us?"

"It's deep underground," Jase said, "They won't hear a thing."

Jarod and Jase walked down a spiral stairway until they reached a big door. Jase opened it and they went inside the room. There were all kinds of training equipment all around.

"Okay, what does training have to do with my powers?" Jarod asked.

Jase face palmed at the question, "You're the smartest kid on Earth, and you have to ask that question?"

"Hey, I don't know anything meta-humans," Jarod said, "Not yet."

"That's why we're here," Jase said, "To train you to use your powers."

Jase grabbed a high-tech rifle from the rack as he said, "Now, lesson 1. Dodging."

"Wait, what?" Jarod asked, "What do you mean, dodging?"

Jase pulled the trigger, and the rifle fired a massive red laser at Jarod. It hit him right in the stomach. Jarod grunted from the impact, but somehow it didn't really seem to hurt.

"What the-?" Jarod said feeling the wound.

"Well, you failed," Jase said, "You were supposed to dodge it. Try again."

Jase fired again. This time, when Jarod turned his head to the laser, everything around him began to slow down as bright blue electricity crackled around his body.

The laser was heading right for his chest again. Jarod stepped right out of the way, and then the laser hit the wall, making sparks go out.

Jase could see Jarod's electricity was crackling around him for a few seconds before it disappeared, "Huh, nice job, kid. Let's up the difficulty a little bit."

Jase then grabbed another high-tech rifle and fired both of them at Jarod. Jarod was able to dodge the first one that went for his chest, but the second one managed to hit him in the leg.

Jarod was thrown right off his feet. He fell on the floor on his back with a strong impact, but he didn't react. He was able to easily stand up again.

"That's weird," Jarod said, "I'm not feeling any pain when I fall."

"Okay," Jase said, "Enough playing around."

Jase then dropped the rifles and then he grabbed a large high-tech cannon. Jarod was afraid of this one. Jase charged the cannon as a bright purple light shined through the barrel.

Jase fired the cannon. The beam began to zigzag across the room towards Jarod. Jarod prepared for the blow to land. The beam then went straight for him. Jarod suddenly ducked his head backwards right before it managed to get him. But right as he got back up, the beam then went right back at him and hit him in the back.

Jarod grunted as he knocked onto the floor. But only a few seconds later, he stood up with the pain gone. Jase charged the cannon again, "Oh, come on. What's it gonna take?"

Jase fired the cannon and the beam zigzagged towards Jarod. But then right as it went for him, Jarod then jumped in the air doing a side flip, and then he began to move at super speed. He noticed that the beam was flying right underneath him.

Jarod then reached out for the beam and he managed to somehow grab it. Then as he landed on his feet, he then threw the beam right back at the cannon.

As the beam hit the cannon, the barrel was broken off. Jase jumped in surprise as he dropped the cannon, "Aw, come ON! I just fixed that!"

"Um, sorry," Jarod said, "But I wasn't really, you know, gonna fall for it again."

"Well, then," Jase said, "Either way, good job. And I got a question for you."

"What?" Jarod asked.

"You know what kind of tech this is?" Jase asked.

"They're sort of like my friend, Dan's technology back at home," Jarod answered, "At least that's what I think."

"Well," Jase said, "Don't know who Dan is, but the technology is designed specifically to fight speedsters. So far, there's only two we know of, and you're one of them."

"And the other?" Jarod asked.

"We just know he exists," Jase said, "Don't know who he is or how to find him. Now then, let's work on your hand-to-hand combat skills."

Jase then began to charge right at Jarod with his fists in the air. Jarod prepared himself. Jase then jumped up and gave Jarod a strong kick and knocked him over.

Jarod fell to the floor, but he landed right on his hands. He then neck-kipped back up onto his feet. Jase spoke, "Not bad. Now you try to hit me."

Jase held up his hand. Jarod was afraid because he remembered that he crushed the door handle in his shelter. So Jarod was able to throw that punch at Jase's hand.

Jase spoke, "Harder."

Jarod then punched a littler harder, and he was able to make Jase's hand go back a littler, but Jase wasn't quite satisfied, "Is that it? I thought you had more power than that. Again."

Jarod then took a deep breath, and then he suddenly swung his fist with all his might and at really high speed. Jase suddenly moved his head to the side as he caught Jarod's punch with both hands. He seemed to be surprised.

"Whoa, I would've broken my hand if you would've hit me," Jase said, but then he thought of something.

Jase then picked up a brick as he asked, "How strong are you?"

Jase tossed the brick to Jarod. Jarod was able to grab it without falling over. Jase thought, "Hmm."

Jarod then took another deep breath as he began to put pressure on the brick. In just one second, He suddenly crushed it into hundreds of pieces. Both him and Jase were shocked.

Jase then grabbed another brick, "Block it this time."

Jase then threw the brick at Jarod. Jarod blocked it with his arm. As soon as the brick landed, it smashed into hundreds of pieces again, and Jarod didn't even feel the impact.

Jase then walked over to Jarod, "Hmm, that's odd. Stand still."

Jarod did what he said. Jase then threw multiple punches to Jarod's stomach and face. But Jarod just stood there without moving or even feeling anything.

Jase then got tired and panted, "Well, you're tougher than you were five minutes ago."

Jarod looked at himself. He could feel that somehow his strength had increased intensely. He couldn't feel any pain. He was more than a speedster.

"Okay, so you handled the weapons," Jase said, "Now let's see how you fight a meta-human."

"Wait, what?" Jarod asked.

Jase walked over to a crate and pulled out an iron pole. The pole then began to seem to melt onto Jase's arm. It turned into a massive iron fist with spikes.

Jarod was shocked, "Oh, boy. Not good."

Jase prepared himself, "What do you think _I_ do with my powers?"

"Umm, you take a piece of metal and turn into a weapon that only you can use?" Jarod asked.

"Not just metal," Jase answered as he grabbed another brick.

The brick then began to melt as well. It turned into a strong shield.

"Uh-oh," Jarod said.

Jase then yelled as he charged at Jarod. He then threw the fist forward and threw spikes fired out of it straight at Jarod. Jarod ducked his head backwards quickly. The first two missed while the third just cut a slight bit of his hair.

Jarod stood back up straight. Jase suddenly punched Jarod right in the face with the iron fist. Jarod was knocked right down to the floor again, but he didn't feel anything. He stood back up again.

"Really?" Jarod asked, "Is that all you got?"

"If you think you can do better, go ahead," Jase said.

Jarod then began to run straight at Jase with his speed. He charged right at him with his fist. Jase then raised the shield. But then Jarod jumped right over Jase and grabbed his shoulder while doing a front flip. As soon as he landed on his feet, he threw Jase straight to the wall.

Jase grunted as he stood up, "Hmph, well, that certainly hurt. Guess I'll need to try harder."

Jase then went to another weapons crate and grabbed a bunch of weapons. They all began to melt like the brick and the bar. They all melted onto him, but they still looked like the individual weapons.

"Huh?" Jarod asked.

Jase then charged at Jarod as the iron fist had five massive blades come out of it. He swung them at Jarod with all his might. Jarod jumped up in the air and did a backflip while dodging the blades. In fact, he jumped really high; Jase didn't see where he went.

"Wait, did you turn invisible?" Jase asked, "I don't think speedsters can do that."

"Um, I'm up here," Jarod's voice said.

Jase looked up and saw that Jarod was holding onto one of the support vents hanging from the ceiling.

"Well, that's new," Jase said, "Oh, and gotta."

Jase pointed to his right arm and Jarod looked at his. He saw that he had a small cut right on his upper arm, but he wasn't feeling it. Then suddenly, the cut began to fade and disappear.

"Whoa," Jarod said, "It's gone."

"Well, speedsters heal quick," Jase said, "Now get down here."

Jarod let go and landed on his feet. Jase spoke, "So what did you think of your first meta-battle?"

"I don't even think that was helping me understand what's going on with me," Jarod answered crossing his arms.

"You weren't supposed to understand," Jase said, "You were supposed to train."

Jarod then face palmed, "You think that's helping me? It's not."

"You want to study your powers?" Jase asked, "Do it on your own time. If you don't know how to use them right now, you're not gonna survive very long."

Jarod then suddenly swing his fist at the iron fist, and then after a few seconds, it completely broke into pieces. Jase went wide-eyed in shock, "Well, that's certainly new."

Jase sighed, "Look, Jarod, you're not gonna survive by being a nice guy."

"How would you know that?" Jarod asked, "Illisies doesn't hate me."

"That guy's a master criminal," Jase said, "He controls crime. Over half the world. He manipulated the president to do what he wanted. If that guy's acting nice, then be afraid. Very afraid. Cause he'll kill you without a second thought."

"I'm not afraid of anything," Jarod said.

"You should be," Jase said, "For your sake, and everyone else's."

Jarod stepped in front of Jase and spoke, "You do not get to decide who is what they are."

"Maybe not, but if you don't listen to my advice, then I'll stop you myself," Jase said.

"You can certainly try," Jarod said.

"I won't try," Jase said, "I will succeed."

"We'll see," Jarod said.

"For now," Jase said, "Do as Illisies says and try to stay alive. I'll check on you later."

Jarod quietly opened the door out of the room, and then he rushed to his shelter. As soon as he went inside, he sat down on his bed. He began to think about his powers.

"This is incredible," Jarod thought, "I always believed that superpowers were all just made up. But now it's really true."

Jarod then heard a knock on the door. It opened and Illisies stepped in, "So, how's our little genius doing tonight?" he asked.

"Just feeling a little tired," Jarod answered.

"I perfectly understand," Illisies said, "But don't get too much rest. There are a few projects that require your assistance in the morning."

"Yeah, got it," Jarod said.

"Oh, and one thing," Illisies said, "I have a secret work room for you if you feel you need to be alone for a bit while you work. If it feels useful, then use it as much as you feel you need. I'll check you in around lunch tomorrow. I'm going to the mainland. So Jase is in charge."

Illisies left the room and shut the door. Jarod sighed. But then an idea came into his mind, "Hmm, a secret work room, huh? Maybe that can allow me to form an escape. But I can't do it empty-handed. I need resources… and some help."


End file.
